Teach a Two Year Old to Read - Update

I thought I'd do an update on how we are getting on with our 'Children Learning Reading Programme'.

  

We are now 5 weeks into the programme and I feel it is going really well. My son (who's 4) is now able to recognise quite a few different letters and can now read quite a few words completely on his own. (Which I think for a 4 year old is pretty good). We probably would have been further along with the programme if I had stuck to it religiously every day, which I admit I haven't (life gets in the way).

You are suppose to do each lesson (which don't take more than 5 minutes) at least twice a day, where as we have only being doing it once a day at the moment. Even so I feel my son is really starting to get to grips with it now and has finally mastered the art of 'blending'. (You can find out more about this on the website).

My daughter who's 2 can also now recognise quite a few different letters and everywhere we go now all I hear is the two of them shouting out letters whenever they see them on signs.

We are all really enjoying spending time together learning the letters and new words and at this rate I reckon my son will be able to read by the time he goes to school in September!

I will keep you updated with our progress and I will try and post up some videos so you can see for yourselves, (that is if first I can work out how to record it and second how to put it on here!)

If you like some more information on this reading programme then check out their website...

 www.childrenlearningreading.com

Personalised Reward Charts

 Today we were sent a very cute, personalised, potty training reward chart for my daughter.

 

There are loads of different styles to chose from on the website such as dogs, pirates, ponies and football. You can also chose different themes such as potty training and brushing teeth. 

They are great value at only £3.00 each and come with stickers and a pen.

We went for the potty training one as we are about to go through this stage again! (Something I'm not looking forward to!)

As you can see from the picture my daughter was very impressed with hers and hopefully this might just make the process of potty training a little smoother.

 Wish us luck!

To check out all of the other designs and themes head over to 

www.personalisedrewardcharts.co.uk

This company is run by a Work At Home dad who runs a couple of small businesses making products aimed at children and their parents.

Check out his other sites below

www.personaliseddoorsigns.co.uk

www.personalisedcarsigns.co.uk

 

Teaching a Two Year Old to Read!

I am very excited this morning!
We have been sent a new product to review and I generally can't wait to get started with it. 

'Teach your child to read, and help your child become a fast a fluent reader!'

  It's called the Children Learning Reading Program. Now I know what your thinking, Oh God not another 'teach your child to read product', but this one looks different.

The programme has been created by a family that have three children of their own. 

If you check out the videos on their website then you can see their daughter at the age of 2 years 11 months reading and then another video of her reading at a grade 3 by the time she was just 4 years and 2 months! There's no tricks in the video, she is generally able to read that well through learning with this programme that her parents have created.

If you still don't believe me then check out their website here and see for yourself.

'The Children Learning Reading ^TM program comes in two jam-packed e-books presenting a simple, logical, step-by-step, and extremely effective system for teaching your child to read quickly, effectively, and fluently without watching television or sitting in front of the computer.

The program is instantly downloadable, and contain a total of 50 step-by-step, super simple, yet amazingly effective lessons that will show you how to easily teach your child to read spending just 10 to 15 minutes each day. Whether your child is 2 years old, 3 years old, 4 years old, in pre-school, kindergarten, or in early grade school, our system of learning to read will help your child become a fast and fluent reader'. 

We have started the programme this morning with both our 2 year old and our 4 year old. I will keep you updated with our progress and maybe even throw in a video or two (if I can work out how to do that). As I said already I am generally very excited about using this product and can't wait to see the results. Wish us luck x

' If You've Had Enough of All the Other Hyped "Quick Fix Programs" that Promise Easy Results - Programs that Sit Your Child In Front of the TV and Computer for Hours Upon Hours, That Have Failed You and Your Child in the Past, and You Are Ready to Teach Your Child to Read the RIGHT Way, Then This is the Honest and Truly Effective Learning to Read Solution You've Been Searching For'

 60 Day - NO RISK, UNCONDITIONAL MONEY BACK, SATISFACTION GURANTEE

www.childrenlearningreading.com

 

Frosty Feet or Toasty Toes?

My son goes to forest school one day a week and he loves it, the only problem is that everytime he goes he then comes home soaked and covered in mud. With the winter and cold weather fast approaching I was starting to get concerned about how it may effect his health and his skin (he has ezcema).  So I started to think about how I could help to prevent him from getting completely soaked, stay warm but still be comfortable and then the answer was sent to us in the form of 'Welly Warmas'. 

'Cosy, warm and fully machine washable, choose from a range of colours and sizes suitable for men, women and children alike.
 Chilly toes on a frosty winter’s morning are no fun for anyone, so we’ve developed top quality micro and polar fleece linings that feel delicious and look marvellous.

 Whatever your choice, we’re confident you’ll love our Wellywarmas as much as we do.'

They worked a treat! Not only do they keep him warm but they also help to stop his feet getting soaked.They can also go in the washing machine and the tumble dryer, perfect for when they get covered in mud.
I was also lucky enough to be sent some for myself and I can personally say that they are very comfy and do indeed keep my toes toasty warm.

If they can keep him warm up on the moors then they must be good!

Prices start from just £7.95, which is great value for money and they have a great selection of colours and patterns. To check out the full range of Welly Warmas just click here.
I can honestly say that I would definitely recommend this product to you. So what are you waiting for, go and grab yourself a pair.

*I haven't been payed to write this review but I was sent two pairs of welly warmas for free*

* All opinions are honest and are my own*

MonkiSee - ' Learning Made Fun' Review

**Please note since writing this review I have recently been informed that MonkiSee are launching a UK version very soon, which as you will read was my one concern about the product **

I'm a big fan of learning at home. I remember doing a lot of learning activities at home with my Mother when I was growing up and I loved it, so now I want to do the same with my two. 

So when we were recently sent a dvd from the series MonkiSee, Learning made fun, I was really excited.

'MonkiSee Baby DVDs are a fun and entertaining collection of baby DVDs that expose babies to upbeat music, original poetry, lovable puppets and real world images.     The MonkiSee collection introduces your baby to body parts, colors, shapes and more, all while teaching your baby to read.  The MonkiSee series is rich in language and has been proven to increase your baby's vocabulary.        Guaranteed to be your baby's favorite series - the MonkiSee line of Baby DVDs are products babies love and parents can feel good about.'

http://www.monkisee.com/

Now I must be honest here and say I was a little dissapointed. The problem was that it was American, now don't get me wrong I have nothing against America or Americans or anything to do with America, it's just that some American words are spelt differently and aren't pronounced the same way as they are in English . For example the word colour is spelt color. Now normally that wouldn't be a problem but when it's a dvd specifically designed to teach children to read, write and spell then the language differences become a problem. However for an American family I'm sure it would be great.

Here's a Testimonial from a mother in America -

   "I love MonkiSee baby dvd!  This is a half hour break each day that you can feel great about.  My son Joseph is learning fast.  At 12 months old, he can show you each body part.  This is such a wonderful foundation for learning!"   .........Rachel C.    Orlando, FL

Saying that though my 3 year old son really enjoys it and asks to have it on quite often. I often catch him dancing along to it. My 21 month old isn't so enthusiastic but she has never been interested in any TV, she's much happier raiding my cupboards and licking all of the spoons in the cutlery draw. She's special!

MonkiSee Baby DVDs     Quick Facts

• These 30 minute interactive baby DVDs keep babies entertained and engaged.

• MSMD baby dvds show lovable puppets that babies love to watch.

• Upbeat children's music has babies moving and grooving to the beat.

• MonkiSee theme song will have your baby singing along.

• Original poetry builds child's language and vocabulary skills.

• These baby dvds are Entertaining and Educational so your child easily learns new things while watching these favorite videos.

• MSMD Baby DVDs help teach important preschool skills in a fun and interactive way.

* I haven't been paid to review this product but we were sent the dvd for free and as always I have given an honest opinion about the product *

Kids One Stop Shop 

 

Organix Review

I like surprises so you can imagine how happy I was when we recieved this in the post the other morning.

We use to use Organix products all the time when H was younger, what with living in the pub and not having our own kitchen. So when this arrived in the post I was quite excited to see what Lj thought about their products.

'Ooo what's this Mummy?'

'hmmm I've never had these before'

'mmm I think I like these, got any more?'

 Not to be outdone by his sister even H got in on the action.

 

This is what Organix say about their food...

 'Our No Junk Promise guarantees our food is made with nothing but the best quality organic ingredients - with nothing unnecessary added and nothing important taken away.  All our foods are made with organic, tasty and natural ingredients to suit your baby's nutritional needs.  So even if you don't have the time to make your baby's meal yourself, you can still give them something that's healthy, nutritious and tasty'.

Included in our pack was the Organic mini cheese crackers, the Organic mini gingerbread men, the Organic cheeseherb puffs, the Organic raisins & chopped apricots, the tasty beef stew & dumplings wth vegetables, the Organic veg & oat bar and the Organic blackcurrant soft oaty bar. 

I have to be honest here and say that both my children enjoyed everything in the pack apart from the Organic veg & oat bar. I think they were expecting it to be sweet and when they realised it wasn't they decided it wasn't for them.
But everything else went down a treat. Thank you Organix. 
To check out the other yummy products from Organix go to there website here.

LOL Review

 I should have written this post ages ago but I just haven't had the time. 

As you may have read in a previous post, I recently went up to London. You can read about that scary experience here.

The reason I went to London was for the a new drink from Heinz called LOL.

The people from LOL were at the Rainforest Cafe along with a nutritionist to answer any questions about their new drink. 

'Bring home the laughs this summer with the great new drink LOL. A lightly carbonated fruit juice drink, LOL is a fizzy treat set to liven up your kids mouths in a cool new way.

Blending together 75% fruit juice and 25% carbonated water, every can of LOL contains one of their important five a day. LOL is available in three fabulously juicy flavours meaning it's a refreshing drink the whole family can enjoy.

Specifically designed to make drinking fruit juice more fun, LOL is a brand new way to keep your kids refreshed this summer and all at a pocket money friendly price of 99p.

Unlike most canned drinks, LOL contains NO added sugar, NO artificial sweeteners, NO preservatives, NO artificial colours and NO caffeine!'

Before I went to London they sent us some of the drinks to sample and I must say that they were a huge hit in our family. Even the OH who is very critical of food and drink liked them but the firm favourite was the Apple & Raspberry one.

I would definitely recommend these drinks for special occassions such as sleep overs, parties, bbq's etc because they not only taste nice but they're also much better for kids than some of the other carbonated drinks out there.

We don't generally drink fizzy drinks in our house as a rule but for these I would make an exception. 

I'd just like to see them in pubs now, they'd make a great drink for the poor person that has been voted as designated driver for the night.

If you'd like to find out more about the LOL drinks then look here on facebook or go to www.heinz.co.uk

*I haven't been paid to write this and all opinions are my own.*